A Week Away From My Organization...

Once a week throughout the summer, and all of this week, I’ve been participating with a girls’ summer camp here in Ucar. We met at a local school every Wednesday from 9am – 12pm and then every day for this week, the last week of camp. The camp is open to girls in 6th – 9th form, which means the girls are about 12 – 16 years old, and my sitemate, Candice, invited them through her contacts at the local schools (she’s an English teacher).

So the girls come when they can – about 25 – 30 on a regular basis, with 6 girls having perfect attendance – and each day of camp consists of three components. First, we have a lesson, and the lessons cover topics like role models, diversity, leadership and creativity. We talk about what these things are and have discussions that hopefully expand their thinking on each topic. Then, we have an art time, and we made things such as pencil holders, yearbooks, collages and picture frames. The majority of the items we used are available here in Azerbaijan so the girls could continue to make any of the projects they want at home. Lastly, we have a sports/activity time. We played volleyball, did yoga, had a dance party and finally a water balloon toss.

Early in the summer one of the girls came to Candice and me with the idea of taking a trip somewhere together. After looking at how much time we had and the transportation available, we decided that a day trip to Ismayilli would be do-able. So we left Ucar at 8am, traveled to Goychay to change busses, and then went the rest of the way to Ismayilli. We were there by 10am and made the park in the center of town our base. We ate our sack lunches in the park, wandered around the bazaar, bought ice cream and basically just had a nice relaxing day. It was great to see the girls in a new environment, one where they don’t have to be as concerned about the community that they’re in because they don’t know anyone. They were just themselves, teenage girls, not someone’s daughter, granddaughter, sister or niece. We stayed in town until about 2pm, then we headed back home. When we got to Goychay (where we needed to change busses), we made another stop. There is a Volunteer in Goychay who recently opened a girls only internet club, so we stopped there. It was our goal to give these girls exposure to a place that they can go, and it’s an easy trip for them, only about 20 minutes from home. There are many internet clubs in Ucar but it’s not socially acceptable for girls to go there. I’ve been a few times, but I’ve never seen an Azerbaijani female at one. So this gives them an option – most people don’t have computers or the internet at home – of where they can use and learn about the internet and computers.

Camp has been an incredible experience! The majority of the girls that attended participated in the lessons and activities and had a lot of fun, and I had a lot of fun with them. I love that age group and since I don’t work in a school I haven’t met that many youth. The girls have already been asking for most of the summer if there’ll be camp next summer (my female sitemate leaves at the end of the month) and I’m definitely going to try. I’m excited to make it my own and see what can be done for these girls. There aren’t many social activities in the community and this gives them a chance to get out of their homes, meet other girls and learn and experience new things. And I already have a list of ideas started for next year…I can’t wait! 

Summertime in Azerbaijan (With Daily Showers)!

So since I’ve returned from a trip to America in June I’ve noticed a change in the social schedule in Ucar, and it’s mainly due to one thing: the heat. It is consistently over 100 degrees where I live (80 degrees while walking to work at 8:30am is pretty refreshing)! In May and June there were many people walking around town in the afternoon – visiting with friends and neighbors, doing errands, etc. It now looks like a ghost town from about 1:30pm – 5 or 6pm, when the heat begins to subside. Everyone hibernates inside – some people are at work while others are at home sleeping or surviving in front of a fan. And those that must be out are staying on the edge of the street, as close to the shade as possible. Then in the evening normal life resumes.

My own personal schedule hasn’t changed too much, but because of the heat there hasn’t been any interest in afternoon English classes at work. So I have morning classes, do some computer work, and head home sometime around mid-afternoon. A nap usually follows. Then I’ll do some work at home once it’s cooler. Meals are also dramatically later in the heat – who wants to cook over a stove when it’s that hot? If there’s even cooking happening in the first place – watermelon is really popular and in season now, and it’s not uncommon to just eat fruit and veggies all day. Now if only I could buy my watermelon a little closer to home…

Happy Birthday America (in Azerbaijan)!

So I’m a couple of weeks behind, but here’s what happened for the 4th of July in Azerbaijan. The holiday was on a Saturday this year, so even those people who have a “normal” work schedule were able to participate. There was a large gathering on the east side of Azerbaijan and then an “America Day” that I traveled to in Mingecivir. It was organized by the PCVs in Mingecivir, of whom there are 7 or 8 (it’s a decent sized town). I wasn’t the only one that came to help; there were about 25 – 30 PCVs that came from throughout the country to help out. “America Day” was set up in a large field near the town stadium and it was an afternoon of fun. There were stations set up that groups of youth rotated through (about 75 youth came) and they experienced things like kite flying, frisbee, soccer, relays, an obstacle course, arts & crafts, face/body painting, etc. After rotations were finished a large game of softball was played. It was fun to show American traditions to the youth of Azerbaijan (cultural exchange goes both ways). My station was more informational than activity based – we had a large map of America and we talked a bit, but mostly answered questions: Which state is the best? (Michigan, of course!) What state is [insert PCV name here] from? What states have mountains? Where is it hottest/coldest/etc.?

So that lasted all afternoon and then later the PCVs gathered at the reservoir for a bbq and beach time. There were hot dogs on the grill (granted, the buns were just normal bread wrapped around the dog…) and watermelon to eat, and it was an incredibly relaxing time to just hang out and be with fellow Americans. AZ5’s time is winding down and they were all talking about their future plans and departure dates (late August/early September) – it doesn’t seem like it’s already time for my group to be the veterans here, to be answering questions from the new Volunteers that will arrive in September, but it’s almost upon us!

Back to "Normal"

Well, America was amazing. I had a wonderful time seeing family (even meeting family I had never met before) and friends. It was interesting to find things that I missed, but that I didn’t realize I missed until I was back in America – like good, strong water pressure.

So as promised, here is my list of things from Azerbaijan that I missed while in America:

- Walking: I walk EVERYWHERE here. It’s nice to have that time to think, see what’s changing in the community around me, say hi to people I know, etc.
- Public Transportation/Not Driving: While there are certain deficiencies in the system here, it’s not very hard to travel throughout the country for a fairly inexpensive price. Also, while I do miss driving, there’s something to be said for not doing it as well. It’s nice not to have to worry about directions and the other driver (well, at least a lesser amount of worry because it’s out of my control).
- People: I’ve met some pretty amazing people (Azerbaijani and American) during my short time here and I definitely missed my interaction with them.

So it was hard to return to Azerbaijan, but I’m back, settled into my routine again, and looking forward to a productive summer and fall!

A Reflection...

Some of you may not know, but I’m headed home to Michigan for a vacation later this month. (If you know my Grampa, don’t tell him; it’s for his 100th birthday party!) So because of that, and as it’s been over eight months that I’ve lived in Azerbaijan, I thought I’d provide a list of the things I miss from America.

- Convenience: Being able to buy everything you need at the same store, availability of pre-prepared foods (from take out at a restaurant to packaged pasta sauce to microwave meals), washing machines, fast internet, etc.
- Driving: Volunteers are not allowed to drive (although with the way some people drive here I’m okay with that rule).
- Entertainment: Having no options of things to do socially – no movie theatres, bowling alleys, concerts, malls, beaches, etc.
- Gender Issues: In America, it doesn’t matter if I’m a man or a woman when I go to a restaurant but here it’s just not socially acceptable for a woman to do everything that a man does. Even just a young woman sitting in a park can be looked upon negatively.
- Religion: It’s not absent here (I hear the call to prayer from the mosque every day) but it plays a different role in life. It’s hard to explain. And there aren’t many options for religious community outside of the mosque – maybe that’s the best explanation: in the States religion is expressed much more through community while it seems to be expressed more individually here.
- Western Plumbing: Enough said.
- And last but definitely not least, my family and friends!

Disclaimer: many of the items listed do not apply to Baku (the capital).

Later this month expect a reflection of what I miss from Azerbaijan while I’m in America…